The National Union of Mineworkers, the SA Communist Party, Cosatu and other affiliated structures had the stamina and courage to march to Eskom's Megawatt headquarters on December 11, demanding the resignation of Andre de Ruyter. Shame on them.
When did Eskom's woes start? Who plundered the resources of Eskom? Did De Ruyter dish out tenders to white monopoly capitalist companies? Where were the alliance partners when RET hyenas and vultures depleted Eskom and other state institutions?
Alliance partners are hypocrites as they know who bankrupted Eskom. When Eskom and other state institutions were being plundered, the alliance partner ululated and whistled on the streets. Alliance partners with their eyes wide open supported a known crook comrade to the highest position in the ANC and the country.
Dr Blade Nzimande, Zwelinzima Vavi and Julius Malema were the cheerleaders. When they woke up from their slumber, the known crook and his RET hyenas and vultures had depleted Eskom and other state institutions. De Ruyter is being blamed for nothing. He is being blamed because he is a white Afrikaner.
Eskom's woes started from 1994 as the ANC never had a clear strategy to upgrade Eskom which was expected to supply electricity to a large black population throughout the country. The ANC was advised to upgrade Eskom 12 or 13 years ago, but failed to heed the advice because of arrogance. Should D e Ruyter resign today, is load-shedding going to stop?
Of course, privatisation of electricity will hit poor people hard, but privatisation of some parts of Eskom could help as the ANC government has dismally failed to manage the power utility as its comrades were interested in looting. The ruling party also failed to manage government institutions as billions of rand have been stolen or misappropriated. It also failed to manage its finances at Luthuli House as staff haven't been paid for a while.
Perhaps a public-private partnership could work, but I am afraid the ANC government could bully its partner and divert funds to their own pockets. ANC politicians are prone to corruption and I doubt that they can live without kickbacks. What difference is it going to make if De Ruyter resigned today? Why are we having load-shedding in the first place?
The ANC promised people of Soweto before the first democratic elections that they would not pay for electricity. Was it possible? Perhaps it would have been possible if the ANC had a clear strategy on how to subsidise poor residents of Soweto and other parts of the country. Most Sowetans want to pay a flat rate for electricity. If they pay a flat rate irrespective of consumption, who will pay the difference?
Some comrades became instant millionaires because of corruption at Eskom and other government institutions. I doubt even the Stellenbosch mafia became millionaires within 12 months during the heyday of apartheid. Alliance partners are also to blame for the current crises at Eskom and other state institutions as the leadership defended the Nkandla crooner and the Guptas.
Calling for the resignation of De Ruyter is uncalled for as he didn't plunder the coffers of Eskom. The ANC and its alliance partners are to blame for load-shedding because they allowed their comrades to deplete the power utility. It is not only Eskom that was plundered in broad daylight but SAA and Prasa were also plundered while the alliance partners were singing the praises of the looters.
The unions are directing their frustrations to the wrong person. De Ruyter has got nothing to do with the problems at Eskom. NUM, Cosatu and Nehawu played a very important role in organising workers during the height of apartheid as some leaders risked their lives and some were incarcerated for organising workers. It is a pity that the same comrades who worked tirelessly to organise workers allowed themselves to be used by the known crook in 2007.
Even if De Ruyter resigned today and the ANC appoint another comrade, it will not help the situation as the damage at Eskom could not be resolved within a short period of time. It could take many years to bring stability as billions of rands have been stolen.
• Rikhotso is a Sowetan reader
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